The International Collating Center, Newmarket, England, and other sources reported the following equine disease outbreaks for the fourth quarter* of 2012.

One report of contagious equine metritis was received from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The causal agent, Taylorella equigenitalis, was detected in two stallions, one of which had been used for breeding in Germany the previous year.

In a national survey in Italy, 47 of 34,464 blood samples were positive for antibodies to Trypanosoma equiperdum, the cause of dourine, with no reports of associated clinical disease.

Equine influenza was reported from France, Germany (one case), the UK (three outbreaks), and the United States. France recorded the disease on three premises involving 10 Connemara ponies, two of which died. The three outbreaks were epidemiologically linked to ponies purchased in Ireland.

Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) related diseases were reported by France, Germany, Japan, the UK and the United States. Three outbreaks of EHV-1 respiratory disease were confirmed in France, with three premises and eight horses involved. The United States reported numerous cases/outbreaks of the disease in several states.

Abortion due to EHV-1 was recorded in France (two cases), Germany (single case), Japan (single case), and the United States (two cases).

EHV-1 myeloencephalopathy was reported in France, the UK, and the United States. France reported six cases. Two outbreaks were recorded in the United States, at an Illinois racetrack and a Minnesota horse farm. Of six cases identified at the racetrack, five were euthanized and one recovered. Of seven horses on the premises in Minnesota, five became neurologic, one of which was euthanized. The UK reported one outbreak in a Thoroughbred training yard that involved four cases, one of which was euthanized.

Cases of infection with equine herpesvirus-2 and herpesvirus-5 were diagnosed in several states in the United States.

Equine infectious anemia was confirmed in Canada with 21 cases: in the Yukon (eight), Alberta (two), and Saskatchewan (11). Three positive cases were diagnosed in the UK on two premises with the source of infection believed to have been a shipment of horses from Belgium in 2008.

Equine piroplasmosis was recorded in France (endemic), Switzerland (one case), and the UAE (endemic).

One additional outbreak of vesicular stomatitis (New Jersey serotype) was diagnosed in the United States, bringing the 2012 total to 36.

Forty-two cases of Eastern equine encephalomyelitis were confirmed in the United States, bringing the annual total to 213. The highest numbers of cases were recorded in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida. West Nile encephalitis (i.e., West Nile virus) was reported by Italy and the United States. Thirty outbreaks were confirmed in Italy, with cases of clinical disease on 13 premises. Prevalence of clinical cases was 23%, with a case-fatality rate of 20%. The United States reported nine additional cases, bringing the annual case total to 654. Texas (117), Louisiana (62), Pennsylvania (50), California (46), and Oklahoma (42) had the highest numbers of cases. The disease was recorded in 42 states.

Five fatal cases of hendra virus infection were diagnosed in Australia: three in the Rockhampton area and two in the Cairns area in Queensland.

Salmonellosis was diagnosed in Germany (three cases), Ireland (one case), and the United States (cases/ outbreaks in several states).

Kentucky confirmed two cases of equine monocytic ehrlichiosis, and sporadic cases of enteritis due to Clostridium perfringens type A and Lawsonia intracellularis.

The United States also confirmed 15 cases of leptospiral abortion, outbreaks of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis in an increasing number of states, and outbreaks of Rhodococcus equi infection. Japan reported a case of tetanus, and Germany reported a case of rotaviral enteritis.

*Third Quarter Report for Australia

This is an excerpt from Equine Disease Quarterly, funded by underwriters at Lloyd's, London, brokers, and their Kentucky agents.

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